30 August 2012 4:40 PM

The Paralympics celebrate the strength of disabled people – and so do all the protests that accompany them

In
a dazzling and, at times, death-defying display, Paralympics 2012
opened in spectacular style as the images whipped around the world
for the pleasure of billions.

For
those who were previously concerned that the ceremony would be a poor
man's version of 'the main event' – The Olympics - such thoughts
were deftly dispelled with the sheer scale and artistry before us.

It
was a visual, and heart-warming, feast that challenged perceptions
from the off.

Who,
for example, could have imagined paralympian Baroness Grey Thompson
arriving air-bound into the Olympic Stadium in her chariot-chair?

How
the event managed not to be cheesy or patronising I have no idea -
but it did.

Directed
by Jenny Sealey, who is deaf, the opening ceremony was bold and brave
with larger-than-life theatrics and all-round good spirit that filled
the Olympic Stadium once again.

By
the time it closed, several hours later, I felt that same buoyancy
and pride that swept the world a few short weeks ago during Olympic
fever.

It
was one of awe and of witnessing humanity at its best. A time when
the human spirit is capable of pushing itself to unimaginable heights
through sheer hard graft and tenacity.

The
Paralympics, as countless observers have been quick to tell us, are
the epitome of such human courage and fortitude.

Leaving
aside the questionable prejudice of such a thought, many able-bodied
people do view Paralympians as a type of 'Superhuman' - a widely
regarded perception that Channel 4 capitalised on for their
advertising - as opposed to the common-or-garden, regular athlete,
that is.

It's
a seductive idea. The premise of a disabled athlete – that of
someone who will pursue their goals despite the obstacles that may
surround them, including the limitations of their own bodies – is a
figure of great admiration for most wide-eyed observers.

But
let us be under no illusion. A paralympian is no more like a regular
disabled people than I am like Usain Bolt or Rebecca Adlington.
Paralympians, just like Olympians, are unique in their field and
should be regarded as such.

So,
to be clear, paralympians are not a representation of the majority of
disable people. Even if Mssrs. Cameron and Co. would like us to buy
into that belief.

That
aside, last night's Opening Ceremony has left many people salivating
over the coming few weeks where human endeavour will be displayed in
all its finery.

How
bizarre, then, that at the same time we are celebrating the
achievements of disabled people worldwide, including our own Team GB,
thousands more disabled people are forced to campaign around the UK
for what amounts to the most basic of human rights.

For,
despite the clear pride towards paralympians, and nowhere is that
more evident than amongst the UK's disabled population, there is the
proverbial elephant in the room that people cannot ignore and are no
longer prepared to tolerate.

This
year, despite widespread revulsion and opposition, David Cameron's
Coalition has forced through some of the most punishing and harsh
measures – via the Welfare Reform Bill - that disabled people have
experienced in my lifetime.

Financial
life-lines have been severed and state-assistance stripped back, and
in some cases completely withdrawn, as disabled people are forced
into a system that will lessen personal independence and increase
state dependence. Almost certainly resulting in 'disabled homes' up
and down the country.

So,
during the Paralympics, the anger and sense of betrayal felt by
thousands of disabled people, and mostly contained within social
network sites and on blogs, has erupted onto our streets and is
refusing to be quiet.

For
the next fortnight, the UK will witness numerous protests around the
UK and led by hard-working campaign group, Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC).

From London to Wales, and all points in between, campaigners, many
of them disabled, are taking to the streets and shouting loud about
the name they deplore the most – and sponsors of the Paralympics -
ATOS.

For
the uninitiated, ATOS International is the French IT company behind
the Coalition's controversial fit-to-work test, the Work Capability
Assessment (WCA). It is considered the enemy of thousands of sick and
disabled people and those who care for them.

In
the year 2010-2011, Atos conducted approximately 738,000 WCA's, on
behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions. The contract is a
substantial one, and together with other Government departments, ATOS
enjoy a 3billion pounds deal with our country.

The
WCA, a tick-box system has severe limitations, as outlined in a
recent Channel 4 'Dispatches' programme and BBC's Panorama, and the
problems are legendary. I am no fan of it and have outlined why in a
previous
piece.

The
upshot with WCA is that severely ill and disabled people are being
ruled as sufficiently fit to be in gainful employment - although with
over 2million unemployed and with the Coalition closing down Remploy
factories, designed specifically for disabled workers, it would be
interesting to see to which jobs they are planning to put these
people.

The
problem with ATOS is that their system is instrumental in classifying
people as fit-to-work when many patently are not.

According
to research conducted by the Daily
Mirror, 32
people die each week in the UK after they have been ruled as fit and
able to work.

For
many
people, subject to WCA and first introduced by Blair's Labour, the
inclusion of ATOS as sponsors at the Paralympics, and in a role they
have enjoyed for the past 10 years, is simply too much to bear.

This
coupling - that of 'Superhuman' and 'killing machine' - is viewed as
little more than Coalition-sanctioned propaganda - and on a global
scale at that.

Some
observers, failing to see the big picture, have asked why blame ATOS
when it is Chris Grayling's DWP who are responsible for the misery
caused to disabled people?

They
say it is the DWP who pay to retain the service of ATOS so surely it
is the DWP, solely, who should be on the receiving end of public
opprobrium?

Frankly,
that misses the point - and by a long and unintelligible one. It is
not the DWP who are conducting tests to ascertain whether someone is
capable for work or not, it is ATOS and no-one has forced ATOS to do
it and rake in billions while they are about it.

Using
the argument that they are only supplying a service and obeying
orders is not dissimilar to the one trotted out by Nazi officers as
they shepherded human beings into gas chambers. They were said to be
merely conforming to requests, and they were, but it didn't clear
them of their role in the barbaric treatment.

I
support an abolition of the Work Capability Assessment. I believe we
need a better and more robust system. To this end, I have launched my
own appeal, and counter-signed by six thousand people, to Labour
leader Ed Miliband to oppose the Coalition's use of WCA and ATOS. It
can be found here.

However,
ATOS sponsorship of the Paralympics is not the only reason people
have turned out onto the streets to protest. They are also doing so
out of fear.

For,
aside from the all-out assault on disability rights from the
Coalition, there is now the issue of how public perception is
impacting disabled people.

Several
hours before the opening ceremony of the Paralympics, Dr. Mark Bush,
head of policy at disabled charity SCOPE, told SKY News that
attitudes towards disabled people have 'hardened' in the last six
months.

This
is not just a deliberately emotive statement concocted for a
soundbyte generation, but a fact that is backed up empirically where
new statistics tell us that physical and verbal abuse towards
disabled people is at its highest figure since records began.

So
it is that one particularly pro-active member of the disabled
community, Adam Lotun, has decided to take matters into his own hands
and stand as a Prospective Parliamentary Candidate in the Corby
by-election.

This
position has become available following the resignation of out-going
Tory MP Louise Mensch and Adam, despite his disabilities and sometime
ill-health, has grasped the baton thrown down by Mensch - and is
going for it.

As
a front runner for disability issues and numerous direct action
campaigns, Adam Lotun has his own physical and mobility impairments
to contend with, including the use of a manual wheelchair. He uses
two hearing aids, has Obstructive Sleep Apnoea - which requires a
machine to help him sleep - and he has Crohn's disease.

Despite
all this, I have seldom known more of a worthy or determined
contender who deserves election to the House of Commons. A place that
could benefit immeasurably from his personal knowledge and
experience.

Disability
is not theoretical to Adam, which it so patently is to the vast
majority of the Coalition who remain embarrassingly ignorant of the
issues.

Lotun
knows what it is like to not be able to use public transport because
his disability has failed, yet again, to be accommodated. He knows
what it is like to turn up for another parliamentary debate only to
find that he is obstructed from taking part because there are
problems with wheelchair access. Most poignantly, he knows what it is
like to try and support his young family despite the savage cuts he,
and other disabled people, have experienced.

He
told me: “I have decided to stand because I
am disillusioned with the derogatory rhetoric and falsehoods that are
spun out to the press. This has led to disabled people being
demonised and vilified in the eyes of General Society.”

Indeed
it has but the fightback from disabled campaigners is under way and
the spirit of people is a sight to behold.

Take
for example, Pat Onions, a feisty campaigner, who despite her own
disabilities, has collected a phenomenal 43,000 signatures opposing
Government cuts. Pat wanted to create a place where home-bound people
could oppose George Osborne's lethal austerity measures and how they
effect those who need assistance. Pat's Petition can be signed here.

So,
let us remember, along with our cheers for the great human
spirit that is the Paralympians, and away from the splendour of the
Olympic Stadium, our disabled people have been treated as anything
but heroes.

And, frankly, there is no time like the present to make
amends for that.

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SONIA POULTON

Sonia Poulton is a journalist, broadcaster and mum. She is fascinated by human interest, social issues, psychological matter and cultural phenomena.
As a former music journalist she media tutored and named The Spice Girls and she recently completed a Psychology degree ("because I wanted to understand myself more"). Sonia is a amateur astrologer who enjoys being thrashed at squash by her teen daughter, dancing to pop videos, helping a local wildlife rescue centre and walking her West Highland Terrier, Bliss in the Cotswold countryside. Her long-lost brother and sister recently found her on Facebook. She deplores laziness, procrastination, bad manners, bigotry and PC-behaviour. She is inspired by human kindness.